Excellent and Fun Giant Monster movie!

Rating: 10/10 (6 January 2014)

First off, if you have been regularly following this blog you will know I just love giant monster movies. My DVD collection is stocked full with many Kaiju movies from every Godzilla movie, Cloverfield, The Beast from 20,000 Fathoms, War of the Gargantuas, Rodan, and on and on. I waited with anticipation to see Pacific Rim and I was not disappointed! This is a great Kaiju move and will hopefully be seen as a classic of the genre some day.
When the trailer first appeared I was a bit worried and disappointed. I was expecting a different tone to the film. I thought it was going to be more gritty and serious and at first glance it reminded me too much of the Transformers movies. (I do like the first and third Transformers movies). After the disappointment abated and I accepted the lighthearted touch, my anticipation for the movie grew. My reaction surprised me because I do prefer a lighter touch with many movies. I guess it was more about my expectations than my preferences.
In the end one of the things I liked most about the film was the tone it set. More and more I am seeing how important the tone of a film is. Pacific Rim strikes that perfect balance between seriousness and fun. There is very good drama with the characters and yet the monster attacks and battles are handled lightly with a good deal of fun. To operate these giant robots, called Jeagers, the human pilots are joined together via their minds. When one pilot loses his brother he is given the chance to join the Jeager team once more with a new co-pilot and she also has to over come her past to help defeat the Kaiju. There are also a couple of whacky scientists that are often at odds with one another and they too have to unite to help defeat these giant monsters. Ron Perlman as the Kaiju black marketeer even has to help out one of the scientists in the name of the cause.
The special effects are great and one of the benefits of modern CGI is seeing both the Jeagers and the Kaiju in their massive scale, Often in Godzilla films that was not an aspect they was always shown. This was one of the most impressive aspects of the film. Pacific Rim also does a good job in balancing human action with monster action. At its heart Pacific Rim is a story about teamwork and redemption. With interesting characters, great action and special effects and an interesting story Pacific Rim is a great addition to the Kaju genre. It has already received multiple viewings in my home and there will be many more to come.